Cafe Con Leche

Students--especially those cramming for final exams--deserve a separate category of comfort food. More than just soothing, their fare has to provide energy and require minimal effort. Here, late-night pizza often fills the bill. In England, it may be baked beans spread on bread. And in Mexico? Students turn to molletes. The snack begins with a split bolillo, an elongated French-type roll, which is lightly toasted and then covered in refried beans, topped with a few slices of crisp...

By M. Kathleen Pratt and Erin Osmon and M. Kathleen Pratt is the Metromix dining producer. Erin Osmon is a special contributor | August 26, 2009

This month's openings lean Latin, with a Mexican-influenced breakfast and lunch destination, a Colombian empanada joint and a Mexican small-plates spot leading the way. Nana 3267 S. Halsted St. 312-929-2486 Brothers Omar and Christian Solis didn't just name this organic-focused Bridgeport breakfast and lunch spot for their mother, whom their nephew calls Nana. They brought her in to make dessert. Mom is Cafe 28 pastry purveyor Maria Solis, and she's responsible for everything from cookies to...

The first time I visited the U.S. in the 1970s, I barely recognized the stale, see-through caffeinated beverage Americans called coffee. Gracias a Dios, things have changed. I grew up with cafe con leche (coffee with milk) from an early age in Peru, and I drink coffee several times a day. To me, coffee is simple. It can have different roasts and levels of acidity (and a little cinnamon, lemon or chocolate can be added for a twist ), but it should stay simple because it's so good...

Mother Nature, take a bow! Breezes, flowers, sunsets, views of the lake or river change the dining pace in Chicago. Take a seat on a rooftop, hoist a glass from a bistro table, plop on a picnic table by the lake. Restaurateurs welcome the season and change of pace. "There's something mood-changing when you eat outside," says Frank Pullen, general manager/owner of Waterfront Cafe in Edgewater. "When people sit by the water, everyone chills. No one is in a hurry." ...

It's midafternoon and you've got a pile of work in front of you, but all you want to do is crawl under your desk and take a nap. At this point, you can do one of two things: move to a civilized country where siestas are the norm, or fight that afternoon drowsiness with a jolt of caffeine. Since we don't intend to move anytime soon, we have to settle for the latter, and one of our favorite ways is to knock back one of Cuba's sweetest little exports, the cortadito. This...

90 MILES CUBAN CAFE (3 forks) A Cuban-born friend recently lamented the lack of good Cuban chow in this town. "But I found a great new place," she enthused, "and it's called 90 Miles Cuban Cafe." It was reason enough to give the Roscoe Village sandwich hut a try. And I found plenty of other reasons to return since. One is not the seating. It's all stools along a counter that lines the room's borders. That's not to say the place feels like a hot dog stand. Its rustic counters,...

By M. Kathleen Pratt and Erin Osmon and M. Kathleen Pratt is the Metromix dining producer. Erin Osmon is a special contributor | August 26, 2009

This month's openings lean Latin, with a Mexican-influenced breakfast and lunch destination, a Colombian empanada joint and a Mexican small-plates spot leading the way. Nana 3267 S. Halsted St. 312-929-2486 Brothers Omar and Christian Solis didn't just name this organic-focused Bridgeport breakfast and lunch spot for their mother, whom their nephew calls Nana. They brought her in to make dessert. Mom is Cafe 28 pastry purveyor Maria Solis, and she's responsible for everything from cookies to...

Several weeks ago, we asked you, our readers, to nominate the best dining neighborhoods in the city and suburbs. And boy, did you respond, clogging our in-boxes with heartfelt tributes to restaurant enclaves throughout the region. We heard from the "hot" restaurant neighborhoods, such as the Wicker Park/Bucktown nexus, the always-bustling River North and budget-friendly Andersonville. There were votes for Old Town ("forks down, the best restaurant row in the city,"...

90 MILES CUBAN CAFE (3 forks) A Cuban-born friend recently lamented the lack of good Cuban chow in this town. "But I found a great new place," she enthused, "and it's called 90 Miles Cuban Cafe." It was reason enough to give the Roscoe Village sandwich hut a try. And I found plenty of other reasons to return since. One is not the seating. It's all stools along a counter that lines the room's borders. That's not to say the place feels like a hot dog stand. Its rustic counters,...

The first time I visited the U.S. in the 1970s, I barely recognized the stale, see-through caffeinated beverage Americans called coffee. Gracias a Dios, things have changed. I grew up with cafe con leche (coffee with milk) from an early age in Peru, and I drink coffee several times a day. To me, coffee is simple. It can have different roasts and levels of acidity (and a little cinnamon, lemon or chocolate can be added for a twist ), but it should stay simple because it's so good...

Mother Nature, take a bow! Breezes, flowers, sunsets, views of the lake or river change the dining pace in Chicago. Take a seat on a rooftop, hoist a glass from a bistro table, plop on a picnic table by the lake. Restaurateurs welcome the season and change of pace. "There's something mood-changing when you eat outside," says Frank Pullen, general manager/owner of Waterfront Cafe in Edgewater. "When people sit by the water, everyone chills. No one is in a hurry." ...

Students--especially those cramming for final exams--deserve a separate category of comfort food. More than just soothing, their fare has to provide energy and require minimal effort. Here, late-night pizza often fills the bill. In England, it may be baked beans spread on bread. And in Mexico? Students turn to molletes. The snack begins with a split bolillo, an elongated French-type roll, which is lightly toasted and then covered in refried beans, topped with a few slices of crisp...

Several weeks ago, we asked you, our readers, to nominate the best dining neighborhoods in the city and suburbs. And boy, did you respond, clogging our in-boxes with heartfelt tributes to restaurant enclaves throughout the region. We heard from the "hot" restaurant neighborhoods, such as the Wicker Park/Bucktown nexus, the always-bustling River North and budget-friendly Andersonville. There were votes for Old Town ("forks down, the best restaurant row in the city,"...

It's midafternoon and you've got a pile of work in front of you, but all you want to do is crawl under your desk and take a nap. At this point, you can do one of two things: move to a civilized country where siestas are the norm, or fight that afternoon drowsiness with a jolt of caffeine. Since we don't intend to move anytime soon, we have to settle for the latter, and one of our favorite ways is to knock back one of Cuba's sweetest little exports, the cortadito. This...

The spot: The stand-alone corner building where Cafe con Leche Bucktown opened Monday was long a mystery to us. For years, it was Johnny's Snack Shop, a divey grill that kept odd hours and attracted an unusual number of sedans with tinted windows and chrome rims during very specific hours on weekends. Then there was the short-lived Lobos Al Fresco Tacos, a decent little taqueria but a bit of a head-scratcher -- this part of town isn't exactly begging for another taco stand. With Cafe con Leche Bucktown,...

Just about the time most folks are winding down from the holidays, Epiphany or Three Kings Day -- a.k.a. Dia de los Reyes in Mexico -- arrives. This holiday falls on Jan. 6, the day the three wise men were supposed to have arrived in Bethlehem with gifts for the infant Jesus. While in Mexico, this can mean more presents -- for kids -- for everyone it means a chance to munch on rosca de reyes (rose-ka day ray-ez) or Kings Bread. The bread is made from a barely sweet yeast...

When warm weather hits Chicago, so do folks pushing snack carts, selling everything from pretzels to frozen fruit-flavored bars. The most ubiquitous snack may be the sugared stick cruller called churros. Pronounced CHOOR-rohs - with a trill on the double R - these ribbed fritters are generally made from a wheat flour-based dough that is squeezed through a star-tipped form into hot oil for frying. Churros are drained before rolling in granulated sugar or granulated...